Mind Control
by Corps Ascreon
Summary: Percy Jackson has been offered the chance to mind control Annabeth. What will he do? Story is set after The Last Olympian.
1. Chapter 1

Well guys, first story. I tried making the story sound as much as Riordan's writing as I can. Please read and tell me what you think!

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It's been two months since the divided groups of Camp Half-Blood banded together for a common cause of defeating Kronos and saving Olympus and ultimately the whole word from destruction. With our joined forces, the likes of Oceanus and Polythemus have fallen before our might. Titans were defeated, adversities were overcome, deals with the Gods had been made, a new Oracle was appointed, and even New York's fallen statue of Frederick Douglas has been recovered. After the destruction of an overwhelming threat, peace has inevitably, temporarily returned, and a huge party was thrown to celebrate this magnificent victory.

So now you guys are probably wondering, what happened next?

Well, sorry to disappoint you, but nothing overly drastic has occurred yet. Sure we had a couple of games of Capture the Flag in Camp Half Blood. We battled a couple more wild dragons and fought some deadly monsters that managed to somehow roam into our camp, but none of those dangerous events were even worth mentioning if you compare it to what happened the week before my 16th birthday. Currently, life is a lot safer, more secure, and above all, more tranquil.

Of course, that doesn't necessarily mean that life has become boring. In fact, with Annabeth as my girlfriend, I'd say quite the opposite. You wouldn't believe what happened on our first date to the movies or our dance at Camp Half-Blood.

What? You're saying you want to know some of the things that happened between us?

Well… sorry fans, but most of the things that happened were a little too embarrassing for me to talk about. I mean, there's no way I can tell you about what happened in that party or what Annabeth did to me in that festival….

Okay, tell you what, I'll tell you about that time when Aphrodite came to me in my dreams and gave me the power to mind control Annabeth.

Yeah, you heard me right. Mind control.

Okay, before your ideas get too wild, let me tell you that I wasn't the one who came up with the idea. You see, I was having a nice nap after defeating this super-tough boar that had clearly been genetically modified. I dreamed about running around in this beautiful, flowery garden (yeah, manly right?) and saw Aphrodite sniffing this rose.

Now something I learned in the past is that if a God appears in your dream, chances are that he or she wants to talk to you. At the time, I wasn't sure why Aphrodite wanted to chat with me, but I decided to get it over with as soon as possible. So I walked up to Aphrodite and asked her, "Why are you here?"

Yeah, I know. Probably not the politest thing I could've said for a greeting to a Goddess, but courteousness had never been one of my strong points. Luckily, Aphrodite didn't seem to mind too much and replied enthusiastically, "Percy! How great it is to see you!"

"Um yeah," I said nervously, purposely looking at some roses, "Nice to see you too."

See, here's the number one rule if you're a guy and you're talking to Aphrodite. Never look at her. Seriously, her incredibly beautiful appearance will mesmerize you and temporarily make you stupid. I mean, I've even seen the sagacious Chiron go ga-ga on her once after meeting her eye. So if you're ever chatting with Aphrodite, look at the sky or some bushes or something. It'll make your conversation a lot more awkward, but it's better than making yourself act like a total fool.

Anyways, going back on topic, Aphrodite continued by saying in a winsome voice, "You know, I never got the chance to thank you for saving Olympus."

Immediately, my face started turning red. It's like an inherent instinct for men to become embarrassed when Aphrodite starts talking to them like they're some kind of hero. You just can't help but blush.

"Oh, uh, it was no biggie," I stammered, "I mean, I had a lot of help and couldn't have done it without my friends. There's no need for you to-"

"Oh my," Aphrodite interrupted, "What a modest boy! Rarely do I ever meet someone so strong and powerful, yet so humble at the same time."

If my face wasn't completely red before she said that, it was now.

"You know," Aphrodite continued, "Incredible heroes _deserve_ to have incredible rewards."

"No, really," I said. Somehow, I had a feeling that her rewards will screw me over, "It's fine. I'm good as I am right now."

"No, no," Aphrodite insisted, "I have something that I'm sure you'll _implore_ me to give to you."

Okay, I'll admit. By this point, I was quite curious about what Aphrodite had to offer. I mean, it's one of those sick curiosities that you know you shouldn't have. You know, like those things you want to know that you know in your heart that you shouldn't know?

"Alright," I sighed, preparing myself to decline the offer, "What is it?"

Aphrodite smiled, "Oh, it's nothing _too _special. It's just, you know, the ability to mind control Annabeth."

Whoa! Didn't see that coming. You see, I expected Aphrodite to offer some love potions or amazing Tulips or something. I mean, she is the Goddess of Love after all. But mind control? On Annabeth too? Dang that Aphrodite. She knew exactly what catches my attention.

"I'm not going to accept the offer yet or anything," I said carefully, "But would you care to explain me how I can mind control Annabeth?"

Aphrodite grinned, and I knew that I was reacting exactly how she planned it, "Oh, so you _are_ interested. I was afraid my feeble gifts would not capture the interest of the great hero Percy."

Have I mentioned how red my face was?

"Well," Aphrodite continued, "Mind Controlling Annabeth isn't too difficult. You just need to perform a couple of rituals."

"Rituals?"

"Oh," Aphrodite laughed, "It's really nothing drastic. Just a little of this and a little of that.

"Care to be more specific?"

"Well, let's see," Aphrodite said in a mock-thinking voice, "First, you'll have to make Annabeth drink some of my potion."

"Potion?"

"Don't worry," Aphrodite said, "You'll see the potion on your nightstand when you wake up tomorrow. I'll teleport one there right now."

"Wait? What?" I exclaimed, "You can't just do that! I haven't even told you if I'll accept the offer-"

"Anyways," Aphrodite interrupted, "You don't need to make her drink all of it. Just a small drop will do. You can mix it in her tea or whatever beverage she likes to drink. Just remember, she must drink this potion in order for this to work. It's quite essential."

"…"

"Secondly, she'll need to see this necklace," Aphrodite continued, taking out a blue necklace with a weird design out of her pockets, "All she needs is a small glance at it. No need to shove it in her face or anything. Hmm, I guess I'll also teleport the necklace on your desk."

"…"

"Hey, the color's blue," Aphrodite said, "I thought you liked blue."

"That's not why I'm being silent…"

"Thirdly," Aphrodite said, "You need to say the word 'frog'."

"WTF?" I cried out, "These 'rituals' are getting more and more ridiculous…"

"Lastly," Aphrodite continued, completely ignoring my last comment, "Annabeth needs to say the word 'big'."

"…big?"

"Yeah. Big."

"Any particular reason why it needs to be that word?"

"Shush. You want to mind control Annabeth right? Just go along with it."

"…"

"Well anyways," Aphrodite said, "I'm guessing you're accepting this deal?"

At that point, I had a huge internal battle in my mind. True Annabeth will be furious if she ever found out she was mentally controlled by me. Thus, morally, it would be quite wrong to accept Aphrodite's present. But gods, the things I could do to Annabeth…. So tempting!

NO! Evil thoughts, begone! There's no way I can do that to Annabeth. It would be completely unfair. Besides, Annabeth wouldn't accept any deals to mind control me, right? But still… all those things I can do….

"By accepting this gift, you won't have to use it," Aphrodite added.

Aphrodite had a point there. I mean, it wouldn't hurt to accept the deal, right? Who knows, maybe there will be emergencies where I _have_ to mind control Annabeth? Besides, there's a difference between having the ability to mind control Annabeth and actually mind controlling her, right? Right? RIGHT?

"I'll accept the gift," I finally told Aphrodite, "But I will not use unless it's an emergency."

Aphrodite giggled and replied, "Alright, you tell yourself that."

"Yes," I repeated, "I will only use it in a pinch. Only in an emergency…. Nothing else."

"Anyways, I'm glad you accepted. But we must part for now, young hero," Aphrodite said, "You will wake up soon. Enjoy your new powers."

I hardly heard her. Instead, I continued to mutter, "Only in emergencies. I can't use these new abilities for anything else. Only in emergencies…"

But as my surroundings began to fade and I slowly began regain consciousness, I already knew in my heart that I was going to try it out the moment I wake up.

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So what'd you guys? Is it good? Do you want to continue reading? Do you feel like you wasted your time? Do you want to gather mobs, hunt me down, and slaughter me for writing such a terrible story? Please review! ^_^


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey guys. I know I haven't uploaded in a long time. But the thing is that I wrote the second chapter a long long time ago.**

**Then, my computer became a butt and decided to delete all of my documents. I don't know what happened. Maybe it was a virus, but for some reason, after I logged back on, all of my documents were gone.**

**The second chapter was originally really good. It wasn't only because I was too lazy to rewrite it, but it was also because the voice I originally used was gone. No matter how much I tried, I couldn't recreate the language I used that eventually lead up to the end of this chapter.**

**Lastly, I lost all sense of Riordan's style. In fact, in this chapter, I think Percy and Annabeth are even more OOC. **

**I'll apologize in advance to you guys if this story isn't to your taste. **

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My alarm woke me up that morning.

As I yawned and reached over to turn off my alarm clock, I accidentally knocked something off my nightstand.

_Crap._

I scrambled to my feet to see if I knocked over something important. It turned out to be a blue necklace I've never seen before.

What in the world? I thought to myself as I picked the necklace up. It was then that I remembered my dream with Aphrodite.

"Annabeth…" I muttered as I stared at my necklace. Suddenly, I had an irresistible urge to try the mind control. Maybe I can simply test it. You know, to simply see if the mind control thing actually works or not….

First things first, I got up, put on some random jeans and a t-shirt I found in my drawer, and went to brush my teeth. Afterwards, I went downstairs and found a blank note on the kitchen counter.

"Gone out with Paul. I made some breakfast for you on the breakfast table. We'll be back soon. –mom"

Before I continue my story, I should probably explain what's currently going on. My mom was scared to death during the war against Kronos, and was terrified of the thought of losing me. The deaths of many of my fellow demi-gods in camp Half-Blood made us all realize how precious our every moment with each other is, and how any one of us could die at any time. As a result, my mom first decided to remarry to Mr. Blowfish, which I really couldn't blame since my mom's previous spouse was absolutely abysmal. Secondly, she forced me to come back home with her for a month in order to spend some "family time". This is also something I couldn't object since it's been years since I last spent time with just my true family. I kinda looked forward to reliving the quiet days with just me and my mom and now maybe Mr. Blowfish. Unfortunately, as things became more intimate between mom and Mr. Blowfish, there were days when they simply went out together, leaving me behind at home. It was hurtful, but also understandable. I told my mom I understood her desire to be alone with Mr. Blowfish once in a while. Who would want a teenager with a knack for trouble to ruin his or her romantic evening?

Those days alone were especially tedious. There was hardly anything to do in the house. I spent my time eating and watching reruns on TV. One time, I was so bored that I even tried to read a book. You see how low I've sunk?

Thankfully, sometimes Annabeth would come over to visit me. She was like the incandescent cure to my excruciating disease of boredom. After a few weeks into our relationship, we felt comfortable doing anything together. We would stroll around the neighborhood, and talk about random things. She once even tried to teach me how to play chess, which I would lose miserably every time I played against her. Once in a while, when we felt really close, she would even share her innermost thoughts and feelings. So strong was our trust that we didn't even have to promise under the river of Styx to never disclose our secrets.

As I munched on a morning muffin, I started to feel guilty for even thinking about mind controlling Annabeth.

My heart has engendered a monster so powerful that one can never truly destroy it. And so unique was this monster that it wasn't like a dragon or the Minotaur, where you can simply chop it up and it will disappear. It's a force that spawns in your mind, and no amount of physical strength can fight against it. This monster was temptation itself. One's only shield against it was self-control.

How ironic. How very ironic.

My thoughts were put to a halt when the door bell suddenly rang. I scrambled to the door and called out, "who is it?", though in my heart I already knew who it was.

"Just open up the door and see for yourself, Seaweed Brain," came the reply.

I grinned as I opened the door and saw Annabeth standing in front of the doorway.

"Hey," She said and invited herself in, "I smell muffins."

"Oh, I was just eating breakfast," I said.

"Nice necklace," Annabeth said, pointing to the blue pendant Aphrodite gave to me.

"Oh, thanks," I said, and then lied, "I found it on the road. It was blue and looked kind of nice, so I took it. Do you want anything to drink?"

"Wow," Annabeth said, "Am I hearing right? For once, you're actually offering me something to drink? What will happen next? Kronos becomes Santa Clause?"

"Ha, ha, very funny," I said in a monotone, "I can simply order you to get your own drink if you want."

'No, that's okay. I'm quite curious to see what you can make," Annabeth said, "Though knowing you, it'll probably be pretty salty.

I pretended to scowl as I walked to the kitchen. Inside, I took out the vial of potion Aphrodite gave to me and added a few drops into the tea I made. I didn't know what made me add those drops. It was as if my arms added them on their own accord.

Once again, I felt that sense of irony.

"Here you go," I said and handed Annabeth the cup of tea.

Annabeth took a sip and her eyes suddenly widened in surprise, "this is really amazing Percy! Where'd you learn to make tea like this?"

"No need to be sarcastic, Annabeth," I sighed. My mom always criticized me for my ability to make tea. According to her, they almost always tasted too bitter or sweet.

"No, but it's really good," Annabeth replied, "I didn't know you can make such good tea."

"Har, har" I said, "Jokes over now. Stop pretending my tea is good."

"I'm serious," Annabeth asserted. And that was when I realized that Annabeth was telling the truth. Perhaps Aphrodite added something into her potion to make any drink taste amazing?

"Well, I call it 'Frog Tea'," I said.

Annabeth snorted and almost choked on the tea as she laughed, "Frog Tea? Are you serious?"

"Well I'm sorry I'm no Linnaeus," I remarked. It felt kind of dumb naming the tea such a ridiculous name, but one of the requirements was to say the word "frog". Now, all I had to do was make her say the word "big".

What am I doing? I thought to myself, this is wrong. I absolutely cannot mind control Annabeth. She trusts me to never do something like that to her, just like I trust her to do the same.

"Wow, I'm surprised you know who Linnaeus is," Annabeth said, "I thought you knew nothing at all."

"Believe it or not, I actually know a thing or two, Miss Condescending," I replied. The two of us laughed and we started talking about random topics again.

The entire time during our conversation, I silently, yet guiltily, hoped for Annabeth to say the word "big". It was such a common word that I was almost certain that she would slip it out sooner or later. But as hours past, she never did. Finally, I decided to push things a little.

"Annabeth, let's play a game," I said.

"Yeah?"

"Let's take turns in saying words that mean 'huge'. Whoever runs out of synonyms first loses."

Annabeth smiled and said, "Okay. Enormous."

"Gigantic."

"Massive."

"Large."

"Vast."

"Immense."

"Humongous."

For a while, we kept trading words. Eventually, I began to run out, while Annabeth kept spouting out nerdy SAT words such as "behemoth" and "colossal" and etc.

"Dang it," I said, "I ran out of words…."

Annabeth laughed, "Silly Percy. After all this time, there's one single, obvious word that I can't believe you haven't said it yet."

"Oh really?" I said, and my heart began to pound, "What is it?"

"This is unbelievable," Annabeth said, "I thought this would be one of the first words you'd say. It starts with a 'B'…."

"Bah… beh… boh…?" I suggested stupidly.

"B… and then an I…?"

"Bih? Bik? Bir?" I asked. God, I must look like a complete idiot.

"B-I-G," Annabeth finally said, "C'mon Percy. What does that spell?"

"Er," I said, "You know how bad I am at English…. I'm not sure. Why don't you say it for me?"

Then, the two of us simply stared at each other in awkward silence.

"Are you alright, Percy?" Annabeth asked in a serious tone, "Not trying to make fun of you or anything, but perhaps a monster has addled with your brain?"

I laughed and dismissed her theory, but deep down I shuddered.

Oh how right you are, Annabeth, I thought, there is a monster messing with my brain, but it is not the one you're thinking of.

Stop this mess while you still can, I told myself. If you want Annabeth to do something, ask her to do it on her free will. Don't force her. Don't mind control her.

But the yearnings. I couldn't stop them. Those feelings were too strong.

_I'm losing._

"There was this thing I read about that other day," I suddenly said, "Something about the Huge Bang Theory?"

And then, finally, she said it, "You're so hopeless, Percy. It's called the Big-"

Annabeth suddenly stopped talking. Her eyes immediately turned blank. She stared at me like a mindless drone.

In a silent voice, I said to myself, I did it…. I actually did it….

"Annabeth?"

The girl sitting in front of me suddenly jerked her head towards me. Her gray eyes bore into mine, as if waiting for an order. A feeling began to bubble in my stomach. It was a medley of all the deepest emotions hidden in my soul.

"Annabeth, are you okay?"

A blank stare was all I received.

"Annabeth, raise your left arm into the air."

Like a robot, the girl immediately lifted up her arm with sudden utmost urgency. Her eyes were still looking at me, waiting for my next command.

That was when I couldn't hold it anymore. The feeling finally erupted. I then, in the strangest voice, screamed, out of guilt, out of delight, out of pain for betraying the person who trusted me the most.

Most of all, I screamed out of the irony. The cruel irony. What is the irony you ask me? It was Aphrodite's true gift to me. Oh yes, she gave me mind control. But more, she gave me a temptation, a monstrous greed, a burning desire that took over my soul. Just like how I now mind control Annabeth, my very sinister temptation mind controlled me.

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Tell me what you think of this chapter... Also, post suggestions on what you think Percy should do now that he can mind control Annabeth. :D


	3. Chapter 3

**Can you believe it? It's an update! Yup. Believe it or not, I'm still alive, and I'm here to finish this story :D**

**Well, without further ado, I'll start the chapter.**

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Annabeth's POV

All scenery stretched to the ends of her sight was endless, white, puffy clouds floating daintily across the cool air and cradling her sore body. Annabeth groaned and pushed herself up to a sitting position, wondering how the wispy clouds could support her weight. She rotated her head to observe her surroundings but nothing exceptional stood out from the smoky scenery.

Just as Annabeth tried to remember how she got here, clouds in front of her rose, morphed, and condensed into the shape of a body. As the figure slowly etched into a recognizable form, Annabeth gasped with realization.

The cloud twisted and stretched, with parts branching out into arms and legs. Its color tanned into a rosy pink. Slowly, the visage melted and smoothed into the most beautiful face Annabeth has ever seen.

"Aphrodite," Annabeth murmured, "It's you, isn't it?"

"Glad to see that you recognize me," The Goddess responded.

"Where am I?" Annabeth angrily demanded, "I remember I was just talking to Percy a moment ago."

"Ah, yes, Percy, right," Aphrodite replied, "We'll get to him later."

The Goddess snapped her finger and nearby clouds morphed into a table and chairs.

"Care for something to drink?" She asked.

"I don't have time for this," Annabeth growled, "If you have no important business with me, then send me back to Percy."

"I'm afraid I can't," Aphrodite asserted, smiling sadly, "You see, it was Percy himself who sent you here."

Annabeth was silent with confusion for a few seconds, trying to remember the events leading up to this moment, then quickly responded with, "What are you talking about?"

"Well, before I answer your question, I would like for you to answer mine," Aphrodite said and asked, "Do you love Percy?"

"Well, of course I do!" Annabeth exclaimed, flushing slightly.

"Do you trust him?" Aphrodite questioned.

"I don't see where this is going-"

"Do you trust him?!" Aphrodite repeated, a little louder this time.

"Well, I guess he's sometimes clumsy and does stupid things," Annabeth responded, "But I do in the end trust him with my life."

"HA!" Aphrodite laughed, then added, "All you girls are the same. Whether weak or strong or independent, you girls always end up trusting a boy you love. You think your loved ones are so pure that they'd never bring you to harm. It's almost saddening how ignorant you humans all are."

"What do you mean?" Annabeth snapped, "Percy would never do anything to hurt me."

"Would he?" Aphrodite asked amusingly, "Let me tell you something. All creatures are self-serving. He doesn't love you so that you can be happy. He loves you because you are a body with a conscience that makes _him_ happy. He'd fight for you, and give his life for you, yes. But all this sacrifice is his desire to preserve his own source of joy. He does it to avoid being riddled with guilt. He does it to protect a treasure he wants for himself. But for you? Just for you to be happy? No, this is something humans inherently feel not."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Annabeth replied, slightly bewildered.

"Fine. Let's add an example, shall we? Let's say, for instance, a woman cheats on a man, and the man finds out. The man would be furious, would he not?" Aphrodite asked.

"In most cases, yes, I suppose," Annabeth answered hesitantly.

"Well, why?" Aphrodite asked, "Why is the man angry? If the man truly only wants the person he loves to be happy, wouldn't he let her do whatever she wants?"

"It's a commitment!" Annabeth answered, "It's called trust! We do it to show our devotion to each other in relationships. Of course anyone would be mad if his or her partner breaks this rule!"

"You're not getting the point!" Aphrodite argued, "People create this so-called 'rule' for their own sense of security. If a woman leaves her man for another guy, shouldn't the first man be happy for her that she found someone who can make her happier? The fact is that he is not! The reason manifests itself here: we care for others for our own sake. To Percy, you are no more than an object to him, an object that exists solely for his own happiness. Like his Riptide sword. Like his other possessions. He keeps them and takes good care of them for their uses, not because he wants those possessions to be happy."

"If that is your perception of things, then I feel sorry for you," Annabeth replied, shaking her head, "It's a wonder how you became the Goddess of Love despite how little you know about that emotion."

"I figured you'd disagree," Aphrodite said, giggling, "And that is why, right now, I will prove it to you. I will show you, let you see with your own eyes the real Percy Jackson."

"Huh?"

"Just yesterday, in his dreams, I approached Percy and gave him the power to mind control you," Aphrodite explained.

"Mind control?" Annabeth nervously asked.

"Yes. He had to do a few things in order for it to work," Aphrodite continued, "I don't remember, but it was something like making you drink something and making you say a specific word. I think the word was 'big', but I could be wrong."

Annabeth's face paled a bit, "Big? I think I remember that was one of the last things I said before I suddenly passed out and got over here."

"Yes," Aphrodite whispered, "You see? Without your knowledge, let alone your permission, Percy has performed these rituals to mind control you. You thought Percy was noble, innocent, and kind, but look at what he's done without your consent. His own desires consumed him, and he couldn't resist but try and take over your mind."

"I don't believe this," Annabeth replied, "This is some kind of joke or hoax. Send me back. This isn't funny, Aphrodite."

"If you don't trust me, then I can show it to you right now," Aphrodite replied, grinning rather triumphantly. She snapped her fingers and a television formed into place. The screen displayed a bird's eye view of Percy's room, and in the center was Percy himself sitting across from Annabeth.

"This is a recording of what has happened in the room," Aphrodite explained, "While we were having our little chat, I myself missed out on what happened next. But we can watch that together now, can't we?"

The Percy in the screen looked up at the televised Annabeth and asked her, "There was this thing I read about that other day. Something about the Huge Bang Theory?"

The real Annabeth shivered slightly. She remembered quite well Percy asking her this in the exact manner.

"You're so hopeless Percy," The televised Annabeth replied, "It's called the Big-"

But the Annabeth in the screen never finished her sentence. Her head suddenly drooped a tiny bit, and her eyes seemed absentminded.

"Annabeth?" Percy nervously asked. There was no reply.

"No way," the real Annabeth whispered.

"Shocking, isn't it?" Aphrodite replied, laughing.

"That foul, dirty-" Annabeth started, but she was suddenly lost for words.

"You should probably save your worst insults for later," Aphrodite chirped, "This is just getting started."

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Percy's POV

"Annabeth, you can put your hand back down now," I muttered, and the girl's arm immediately dropped back down on her lap.

The situation felt quite surreal. Even though I haven't yet made Annabeth do anything significant, I was already taken over by a strange feeling of happy dominance.

There was about a million things I wanted Annabeth to do, but I wasn't sure where to start. I haven't really planned this far yet. Up till this point, I was sort of silently wishing the spell to take effect by accident, but I didn't really keep my hopes up. It was really quite exhilarating when Annabeth finally said the magic word.

However, there was one particular thing I wanted Annabeth to do with me. The desire took place quite a while ago, but hasn't truly developed until recently. Perhaps now…

I kicked myself. Ah, what was I thinking? That is simply _much _too far. Make Annabeth jump around like an idiot? Maybe. Make her do my school homework that my mom left for to enhance my "education"? Also maybe. But make Annabeth do _that_? No. Definitely not.

But…

I looked at her docile, blank face. What Annabeth would never know would not hurt her, right? This is to satiate my own yearnings at the expense of hardly anything. So what's stopping me?

Slowly, I crept up to the motionless girl, telling myself that everything will be fine. There is a reason why we are humans and not angels. We make mistakes. We have our wants. Is it not perfectly normal to sometimes give in to them?

Soft gales of wind drifted through my open window, gently brushing aside a part of Annabeth's shirt, unveiling her prized dagger. I stared at her weapon and remembered how she got it.

She was only six, if I can recall correctly, when Luke first handed her the Celestial Bronze dagger. Annabeth had just run away from her harsh uncaring family. She once told me she hated spiders, but was constantly tormented by them at her old domicile. Her step-mother rarely cared for her well-being, and ignored Annabeth's pleas to exterminate the fearsome pests. Her father was always out for work, and rarely had any chance to see his daughter. Almost since the moment of her birth, Annabeth was alone.

And out of abject misery, Annabeth finally had enough and ran away from home. Only a few years after she could walk, Annabeth was trapped in a world full of deadly monsters hungry to kill and consume her. For months, she stumbled aimlessly alone, unable to trust anyone, unable to have a single friend to depend upon.

Finally, the Gods had mercy on Annabeth one day by bringing her to Luke and Thalia, who almost immediately became her trusted companions. Without a doubt, those two were her entire world, and she would do anything for them.

Unfortunately, soon after, Thalia "died" protecting them to send them to Camp-Half Blood. Years later, Luke betrayed her and the entire camp when he went to join Kronos. To make matters worse, just a few weeks after Thalia was revived, Annabeth was separated from her again when Thalia left Camp-Half Blood to join Artemis and her gang. At this point, Annabeth was once again deprived of her two best-friends. All she had left was me.

She declined Artemis's offer to join the Goddess as well and be with Thalia for me. How many times did she save my life in combat? Looking back, Annabeth made so many sacrifices for my sake.

And I? Just _what_ was I about to do? I had already betrayed Annabeth by attempting to mind control her. And if that wasn't enough, I was planning to do far more. Is this really the way I'm going to repay her? Agh! What an idiot I've been.

I stood up. A drop of water fell on my hand and I realized I was tearing up slightly. I cleared my throat and spoke in my most genuine of voices, "Hey, Annabeth? I know you probably couldn't hear me right now. But you know what? I'm sorry. I'm sorry for not telling you about my dream I had with Aphrodite, for not explaining to you my new powers, for losing to my own desires and mind controlling you regardless. Annabeth, I didn't want to betray you. If Aphrodite gave me the power to mind control you again, I would not do it. Before, you held emotions of mine that I myself did not fully understand. Before, I was blinded to only see your face, your body, your capability to fulfill my own selfishness. But now, I see your heart, your sacrifices, your care. Forgive me, Annabeth. I saw it too late. You may never hear or know of this, but I swear, from this moment forth, to never do anything to harm you or to take advantage of you again."

There was no response from Annabeth, but I didn't need any. My resolution was for myself, and I was thankful to make it before I did anything completely unforgivable.

"Aphrodite," I called out, "Please end this mind control thing. This is enough. I had had enough."

I sat and leaned back against a wall, waiting for the Goddess to respond.

* * *

Annabeth's POV

There was absolute silence up in the clouds when Annabeth and Aphrodite heard Percy's speech.

"What? This doesn't make sense!" Aphrodite exclaimed, "Why isn't he doing anything? This is nonsense!"

Annabeth gave a silent sigh of relief and replied, "Did you think that every person is completely heartless? Self-serving? You may have given up your own husband to be with Ares instead, but the rest of the world does not have to follow you. There are good people in this world, and you just watched with me _proof_."

"No. Something's wrong," Aphrodite mumbled, "Was Percy pre-warned? Did he know we were watching? Somebody must have told him what was going on…."

"Stop it, Aphrodite," Annabeth said, "No one warned him. I admit that Percy have somewhat given in by mind controlling me in the first place, but that was the end of the road. I don't want to rub it in your face. You're a Goddess, and I respect that, but it would be sensible to accept the possibility of loyalty in relationships."

Aphrodite looked back at Annabeth with a pained and hateful face, "Fine. Very well. Your Percy didn't betray you, not this time at least. But one day, his love will ebb away. We'll hear what you say then when that day happens."

"Yes, yes. We'll see. Are you ready to send me back now?" Annabeth asked, smirking.

With one last angry glance, the Goddess waved her hand, and Annabeth felt her mind drifting off to sleep.

* * *

Percy's POV

"Annabeth? Hey? Are you awake now?" I asked.

Annabeth groaned and rubbed her eyes open.

"Hey, Seaweed Brain," She answered, smiling when she saw me.

I sighed in relief. It had been only a few minutes since I cancelled the mind control, but those long seconds felt like eternities.

"Well, I'm glad you're back," I said, "You kind of passed out there."

"Passed out?" She replied, "Explain what you mean?"

"Well, um, we were just talking," I stammered, "And all of a sudden you blanked out."

"Is that so?" She answered, grinning in a way that I didn't quite like, "Would you happen to know what caused me to blank out?"

"Er," I murmured, "Not really?"

Smack!

I staggered back a little after Annabeth slapped me across the face.

"You idiot!" Annabeth snarled, "I saw exactly what happened."

My heart dropped.

"What do you mean?" I replied.

Annabeth grabbed the nearest book she could find in the room and clocked me on the head with it.

"That's for mind controlling me!"

"Oh my Gods!" I cried out, "Annabeth, how did you..?"

"Aphrodite showed me everything when I was unconscious," She explained, "And I got to see all your pathetic acts while you were attempting to mind control me."

Wow. I am completely busted.

"Annabeth," I began, "I know you probably won't believe me but-"

Suddenly, the girl lunged at me and knocked me to the ground. I expected Annabeth to start strangling me right there, but to my great surprise, I felt her lips suddenly pressed against mine. My body began to relax a bit, but I was completely confused.

"Well," She added after she broke away, "That's for not doing anything worse afterwards, I guess. You really had me worried there for a bit."

I was shocked. Wow, was I really off the hook?

"Annabeth, what I did was really stupid-"

"Yeah, you're right. It was probably one of the dumbest things you've done by far, and that's saying something," Annabeth confirmed, "But I guess just this once, I'll let it slide."

There was a silence for a bit as we both sat still next to each other.

"Hey, Percy," Annabeth said, "What was it that you were planning on doing anyways when you mind controlled me?"

My heart suddenly started racing. Should I really tell her?

"I won't get mad, I promise," Annabeth added, "I'm really quite curious to know."

"Well, in that case," I said, "I'll only tell you if you promise to do it for me afterwards."

Annabeth hesitated for a moment and said, "Fine. Very well. I trust you. What was it?"

I whispered in her ear what it was, and the look on her face afterwards was priceless.

* * *

**Finally, after an entire year and a half, I finished this. Three chapters in almost 20 months! Woohoo!**

**I'm sorry for not updating very often. I'm pretty busy, but I hope the end was to your taste. I leave it to your imagination what it was that Percy wanted, and what happened afterwards. **

**Please review and tell me if I should write more PJ fanfiction! Also, if you guys really disliked this and want an alternative ending, tell me that as well, and I'll write one. I actually do have a good alternative ending in mind.**

**Anyways, thanks to all you people who stuck with this story from the start! And for all you newcomers, I hope you guys enjoyed the story as well. **


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